Loxton, South Australia

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Loxton (34°27′S 140°34′E) is a town on the south bank of the River Murray in the Riverland region of South Australia. It is a service town for the surrounding districts. The area near Loxton is a significant citrus fruit and summer fruit growing area. Loxton is also the main town for the northern part of the Murray Mallee which is a dryland farming and grain cropping area.

Loxton is in the local government area of the District Council of Loxton Waikerie. It is in the South Australian House of Assembly electoral district of Chaffey and the Australian House of Representatives division of Barker.

Loxton has a pioneer settlement museum (known as the Historical Village), preserving the heritage of the mallee region. It is also famous for the lights decorating houses and other buildings in December each year, and the annual Loxton Gift handicap sprint race held in late February. The Loxton Gift athletics carnival offers the most prize money in South Australia apart from the Bay Sheffield held at Glenelg. It is a lead-up event to the Stawell Gift held at Easter.

[edit] Salt interception scheme

Loxton is a town with a with many farms and fruit crops. The wide range of water use is beginning to make the water table rise according to scientists Scott Robert and Kyle Beau Hand,^{[citation needed]} while studying the water table and the affects of salinity they have found that if the water is intercepted before it reaches the river it will then help keep the salinity levels in the river down. The joint program of salt interception schemes to help keep salt out of the River Murray, costing an estimated $60 million, commenced in 2001. This program is expected to deliver 61 EC at Morgan by December 2007. The partner Governments of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia and the Commonwealth have agreed that joint salt interception schemes must both be economically and technically feasible.